The Pollença Wine Fair: from a meeting between friends to a great showcase of Mallorcan wine

PollençaMore than twenty years ago, the Pollença Wine Fair was almost an excuse to meet, toast, and build community. A more festive than specialized event, where wine served as a common thread to bring together friends, producers, and the curious in a much more informal atmosphere than what we know today.

Over time, that almost familiar gathering has become one of the major events on Mallorca's gastronomic and wine calendar. The Wine Fair, organized by the Vi Primitiu association with the support of the City Council, celebrated its 23rd edition in 2026 at the Cloister of Santo Domingo, with 37 participating wineries and nearly 250 wines to taste, consolidating itself as one of the island's major showcases for the sector.

But beyond the numbers, the fair also tells the story of how Mallorcan wine has changed. The president of Vi Primitiu, Josep Bibiloni, insists that these spaces serve for much more than selling bottles: they are meeting points between wineries, a tool for educating the consumer, and a way to add value to local products.

Two decades ago, many young people came to the fair with the idea of "having a party." Now, the winemakers themselves detect a real interest in the product, in understanding the varieties, the processes, and the territory behind each glass. Wine culture has matured at the same pace as the sector.

There has also been a clear evolution in quality. The recovery of family wineries, the commitment to pioneering projects such as the Malvasia from Banyalbufar, or the consolidation of designations such as DO Binissalem, DO Pla i Llevant, and IGP Vi de la Terra Mallorca have helped to professionalize a sector that years ago was still struggling to gain prestige.

The mayor of Pollença, Martí March, specifically highlights this change: collaboration between associations, wineries, and administration has allowed the fair to grow and benefit everyone. It not only fosters wine culture but also places Pollença on the gastronomic map and generates local economic activity.

Turning point

Many consider 2016 a turning point. That year, with record tourism figures in the Balearic Islands, the fair consolidated a new trend: more and more foreign visitors were beginning to understand these types of events as an entry point to local produce. The Wine Fair was no longer just an event for Majorcans and was also becoming a tourist experience. And this continues to happen. This year, among the stalls, residents, sommeliers, restaurateurs, and tourists mingled, discovering that Mallorca can also be explained through wine. The fair functions as an open classroom: you taste, you learn, and you create a direct connection between producer and consumer that is difficult to find in a supermarket or on a restaurant menu.

Precisely here lies one of the sector's major reflections: Majorcan wine is not expensive. What often makes the perception costly is the restaurant industry. At the fair, the public realizes that they can access high-quality wines at much more affordable prices than often thought, and this helps to break down many prejudices.

The Director General of Agri-food Quality and Local Produce, Joan Llabrés, considers that Pollença continues to be a benchmark and essential fair for the sector. In the same vein, the Minister of Agriculture, Joan Simonet, recalls that Pollença was a pioneer in this model of fairs and argues that direct contact with wineries is vital for promoting consumption and exporting confidence in local produce.

From the tourism perspective, this transformation is also viewed with interest. The Island Director of Tourism, Pedro Mas, argues that the hotel sector must continue to increase the presence of local produce, beyond the current minimum requirement of 3%, as this strengthens the entire economic chain.

Perhaps this is the great triumph of the Pollença Wine Fair: having ceased to be just a fair. Today it is a cultural, economic, and educational tool. A space where wine serves to explain territory, to build community, and to demonstrate that Majorcan produce, when believed in, needs no comparisons.